Strawberries and Boots
by LittleMermaid325
Summary: HIATUS. Harry being a butt, PMSing again & being an emotional wreck as Luna attempts to comfort him.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: Normally I don't read or write Harry/Luna fan fictions, but when I joined a writing contest I was assigned this ship. So I spent the good part of a week trying to think of anyway in which Harry and Luna would end up or be together, as it was so unlikely a match. Finally an idea came to me! And it was a good idea! So I decided to run with it and so here my very first and most likely only Harry/Luna fan fiction. Rated M for mature. HBP spoiler's heavily present._

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Luna woke up in a haze. It took her a few minutes to remember where she was. She looked around at the heavy red velvet curtains surrounding her, keeping her warm. Scenes from last night slowly returned to her. She remembered walking into him on her way to her common room. He was staring blankly at a statue of a gargoyle.

She looked over at the sleeping boy next to her. He was snoring lightly. It made her want to laugh. He made amusing sounds. Especially last night. She had known not to laugh then, too. She watched a piece of his hair fall onto his face. She resisted the urge not to tuck it back. She hadn't resisted last night. But then that's how she ended up here. In his bed. With him. He had been upset. She had tried to comfort him.

Luna wondered if the other boys in his dorm had heard them, or if they'd gone to another dorm to bunk. She didn't much care one way or another, but she doubted Harry would like it if they'd stayed. She shivered as she pushed the curtains gently aside, letting some cool air in as she did. Everything was quiet. Luna wrapped a sheet around her and poured herself a glass of water. She wanted to be gone before he woke. She knew he would regret last night, and would be ashamed of himself for letting it go so far. He had a temper. She had seen it that night they raided the ministry, though if she hadn't it was still vivid in the fire behind his emerald green eyes.

Dumbledore had been there that night, she remembered idly. She liked Dumbledore. He was always kind, polite. He subscribed to her fathers magazine, and would sometimes write letters to the Editor. She could see why Harry would miss him so.

Many people seemed to die in Harry's life; Luna ticked off names on her fingers: his parents, Cedric, his friend Stubby (Sirius she thought he had called him), and now Dumbledore. That's five people in just seventeen years whose deaths he had been present. She remembered comforting him last year. It hadn't ended like this.

The sun was beginning to rise. She should probably be leaving soon, she thought. She looked around for her robes, finding them in a pile by the door. She remembered his hands in them, him pushing her against the wall, eager. His hot breathe on her neck, his lips on hers as her robes were quickly discarded and he carried her to his bed.

She put her robes back on silently and placed an unwrinkling charm on the so she wouldn't have to walk out looking so disheveled. She wondered if she should leave a note for him-he had been so nice, so gentle. He kept asking her if it felt good, if he was hurting her. He seemed to think he was her first. She didn't correct him.

She felt slightly dirty knowing she had let herself be taken advantage. She slipped quietly out of the dorm without a note. She walked quietly down the stairs and through the common room keeping her head down. She could see Ginny Weasley glaring at her from the corner of her eye. She was sitting with her brother Ron and Hermione Granger. She didn't stop, didn't turn to look. She wasn't in the mood for a confrontation.

She walked slowly back to her dorm, glad that it was so early. She didn't want to talk to anyone right now. She stopped only at the tapestry into the Ravenclaw common room to say the password (Flibbertigibbet) and then retreated to her dorm. She drew herself a bath and grabbed the latest copy of The Quibbler. She stripped herself swiftly and stepped into the steaming tub. She scrubbed herself raw before eventually succumbing to the heat. Laying back she tried hard to relax, tried hard to forget how much she had wanted last night to happen.

Maybe under better circumstances, or had they met earlier…

Luna didn't want to admit to herself what she knew to be true. She cared for him. She cared for him deeply. He cared for Ginny Weasley. He had called her Ginny at some point in the night, right before he fell asleep. He was leaning on his side, facing her. She was facing him. His eyes were closing. He brushed hair off of her face and told her he loved her. Her eyes had widened enormously, hopefully, but then he had called her Ginny. She hoped he didn't remember. She didn't want him to know the embarrassment, the hurt that she had felt when he had called her that.

The bath was beginning to cool. Luna lifted the plug. She watched the water drain. There was something oddly soothing about watching the dirty water swirl around to be swallowed whole by a mass of gurgling pipes. She shivered as the air contacted her pale, damp skin. She reached for a downy sapphire blue towel. She wrapped it tight around her and looked in the mirror. Two large brown eyes stared back at her. She had a bruise on her neck. Love bite, she thought. Crap.

She put on a clean set of robes and tied her hair back. She found a scarf and tied it around her neck. It had strawberries and boots on it. She looked mournfully at her bag. There was no need to take it. Classes had been canceled. She decided to take her collecting tin with her to breakfast. At least that way she could do something useful. Raising money to help endangered creatures like the snorklepuff usually cheered her up.

She put the tin in her pocket. She walked through her dorm and out the common room. She ignored her roommates when they said good morning. Naturally they hadn't realized she was missing all night. The halls were beginning to crowd as students woke up and noticed their hunger. Luna paid little attention to where she was going. She knew the way. She had attended the school six years, had she not? Of course this truth worked against her as she found herself now staring directly at the hideous gargoyle statue in front of the late Headmaster's office.

She could see him there, last night. She had walked up to him, to see if he was alright. She remembered the manic lust in his eyes when he turned to her. It frightened her. She bit her lip. He just stood there. She pushed some hair out of his eyes. He kissed her. She kissed him back. He pushed against her and she gasped. He leaned in and whispered to go somewhere more private. She was breathing heavy. She couldn't answer. He picked her up as though to carry her over the threshold on their wedding day. He held her the whole way to his common room, up the stairs, and into his dorm. He placed her gently on the bed and stood back. For a minute he just looked at her, as though not sure what to do. She was confused. He sat next to her. He asked if it was okay. She nodded.

She was at the Great Hall now. She opened the large doors and walked in. A few heads turned to look at her but then that was normal. She sat at the end of the Ravenclaw table and poured herself some pumpkin juice. She looked over to the Gryffindor table. He was staring at her. His eyes narrowed. A chill ran down her spine. He was rejecting her, telling her last night was just a mistake. She got up quickly and left the table. She didn't want him to see the tears streaming down her face.

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_A/N: Review! Please review! I will updatemore often if you review! Even if you want to tell me it sucks (which it doesn't btw) review!_


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Thank you guys so much for the reviews! I'm so sorry it took me so long to update._

_Thanks to those who reviewed:_

_**A Ferret Called Silver:**If you say so... _

_**e-chan16:** I expect the same or a similar responce to this post as well..._

_**Miss Cody James**: I checked MuggleNet a thousand times and all it says is that she has pertuberant (spelling?) eyes and pale eyebrows, so I really don't know if your right on that one, as for now I'm pretending her eyes are brown. I saw the mistake about the years too, but it was too late and I'm too lazy to go back and fix one mistake right now. And when she left Harry's dorm it was still very early, so the only people who saw already knew, and I didn't want dialogue in the chapter. Does that make any sense at all? Porbably not..._

_**Dinosaursisfine**: Thanks! Luna may be a bit out of character, but honestly we have no idea what (or if) she thinks, so I'm taking some literary liberties with her._

_**Harpy Prince**: The entire story couldn't have come about without Dumbledores death. But I'm glad you like my style!_

_**Dark-Sayoran:** A lot of people don't seem to like Ginny. wonders why. I don't like her in fan fiction, but I don't mind her in the books._

_**AbsolutleyFantabulous:** Glad you like it! Yea, I'm not much of a fan of them in the books, and in fan fiction all I've seen of them is fluffy, so I havent had much of a chance to change my opinions..._

_Anyway, I hope you guys like this chapter!_

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Harry woke up that morning, his head pounding in his ears. His mouth was dry and his breath reeked. He could feel his stomach in his throat, gagging him. His skin was burning but the hairs on his arm were raised all the same. He raised a hand to his head and pushed away a stray lock of hair. The smell of alcohol clung to him.

He rolled onto his back. The sheets next to him were warm. He looked to his side. There was an indentation in the pillow. From another head. Someone had shared his bed last night. He groaned inwardly. Of all the things in his life that had gone wrong, of all the things in his life he desired to forget, this had to be the one?

He pulled himself up and looked around. He was alone. He looked for any clue as to what happened last night. There was a blonde hair on the pillow. Red, he thought, thinking of Ginny. He found his dress robes were at the door in a pile. He disregarded them and stumbled into the bathroom. He stared at the toilet for a minute, trying to figure out if he'd rather vomit or urinate first. The latter won out in the end. He closed his eyes to the blinding light and listened to the liquid hit the porcelain bowl until he was empty. He flushed the toilet. He watched the water swirl before retching the contents of his stomach into it. Amber liquid burned his throat as it departed his body.

Harry wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and flushed the toilet again. He waited for it to calm before turning on the shower. He stepped into icy water. Completely unnecessary, he thought. He faced the water and opened his mouth, letting it fill. He swished the water around in his mouth than spit it out. Gross.

He stepped out of the shower. The humid air wrapped around him tight, suffocating. He brushed his teeth ferociously, struggling to replace the rancid taste. He grabbed a large ruby colored towel and covered himself with it. Bracing himself, he opened the door letting in a gush of cold. He saw his robes still where they had been discarded last night. He walked over to them, ignoring the throbbing in his head. He picked them up to put away. A silver charm fell on the floor. He picked it up and turned it over in his hand. It was a strawberry.

He saw her eyes, large and brown staring at him, frightened. She stepped forward and touched his face. He leant into her hand. She was biting her lip. He wanted to taste it. He took a step forward, she kept looking at him. He kissed her, ran his hands through her hair, held her close. She kissed him softly, as though she was unsure of herself. This only proved to encourage him and he pushed her against the wall and felt her gasp for breath against him. He wanted her. Now. He picked her up and carried her to his dorm. He didn't notice Ron and Hermione on the couch, staring at him, or see Ginny as she came down the stairs from her dorm, stopping short, her mouth open, eyes widening. He put her down when they entered his room. It was empty. He shut the door and turned to her. She pushed up on her toes and kissed him lightly, than backed down and blushed. He grabbed her and kissed her deeply, grinding against her. Her breathing increased. He could feel her form against him. There was no doubt in his mind she could feel him. His tongue separated her lips as his hands entered her robes. His kissed her lips and dragged them down to her neck. She arched her back, pushing into him. He took off her robe. She took off his, her bracelet catching slightly. He picked her up again and placed her on the bed. She looked up at him, scared. He asked her if it was okay. She nodded.

Shit, he thought. He looked at the charm again and threw it at the wall before crumpling in a heap. The door opened. He looked up to see Hermione walk in. He got up, holding his towel tight. She sat on his bed and looked at him.

"What?" he asked her.

"Get dressed" she said.

"Don't tell me what to do!" he scorned, opening his trunk to find a pair of boxers and some robes. Hermione didn't move or look away; she kept staring at him, even after he was done dressing. After a few minutes of silence she whispered hoarsely to him.

"What did you do?"

"I think we both know the answer to that."

"You destroyed her" Hermione's eyes were wide with fear and resentment to the man/boy before her.

"Don't be so melodramatic Hermione."

"You love her! And she loves you! And you blew her off for a one night stand?"

Oh, Harry thought. She means Ginny.

"We broke up!"

"Bullocks. We all know that was false crap. You belong together and you know it. Only you had to mess it all up by dumping her, and the same night sleeping with one of her friends! How do you think that made her feel? To have the love of her life dump her under the pretence of protecting her, and than see him hurt her more than any spell or curse ever could? What the hell is wrong with you? Why would you do that to her?" Hermione's eyes filled with tears. He looked away.

"You don't know shit about any of it" he said softly, opening the door to leave.

"Fine! Leave! Don't worry Ron and I will pick up the pieces to her broken heart! You just go on being Harry fucking Potter! The Boy Who Lived! The Chosen One! The hero of the wizarding world! Who care's who he fucks so long as he's having a fucking good time at it!"

"SHUT UP! I don't need this right now! I have enough shit going on right now I don't need little miss know-it-all telling me what to fucking do!"

"Well than what do you want from me? Pity? Sympathy? How about a good screw? That'll fix everything up real fine!"

"Sod off!"

"Same to you!"

Harry walked out and slammed the door, not even caring that it was his room, and he should be kicking her out, not the other way around. He stormed down the spiral staircase, past Ron who had his arm over a crying Ginny. He thought of going to the hospital wing. He wanted the pounding to stop. He passed the gargoyle statue in front of the late headmaster's office. Her eyes were large, deep. He could get lost in them. He shook his head to rid himself of the memory, causing the throbbing to return with an unmatched fury.

He kept walking until he was outside the hospital wing. He turned around. He couldn't go in. He was underage. He'd been drinking hard liquor last night. Madam Pomfrey would know. He walked to the Great Hall. He sat alone at the Gryffindor table. He didn't want to talk to anyone. The smell of food made his stomach churn. He grabbed a piece of dry toast and tried to choke it down.

He looked away from the food. His eyes found her on their own. She was looking at him. He saw Ginny walk into the hall. She looked at him, than turned away and left. He looked back at the Ravenclaw table. She was still looking at him. He glared at her. She had ruined any chance he had with Ginny. Stupid bitch.

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_A/N: Review Please! Reviews make me happy! They really really do! Even the mean ones! Not that I considered any of those mean, becuase I didn't. I burnt my hand in the dishwasher the other day can you believe that? But that's off topic... REVIEW!_

_Hearts,_

_Emma_


	3. Chapter 3

_(A/N): Yey! Thank you all for the reviews!_

**A Ferret Called Silver:**_ Will Smith is hot. And it does look shorter here, but as you see it usually in the form of me IMing it to you, it would._

**absolutleyfabulous:**_ Thanks for putting me on your favorites! Yea he did do it to himself, but he'sa guy, what do you expect..._

**pettybureaucrat:**_ Thanks for the compliment!_

**Harpy Prince:**_ I still have no idea if they will end up together or not. They write the story, I just type it._

_Wow, that was all the reviews. That makes me sad. Review people! Anyway, here's the next chapter. We get a nice confrontation between Luna and Ginny in this one. Hope you like it!_

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Luna exited the Great Hall, tears streaking her face. She ran to the nearest bathroom and locked the door. She walked over to a sink and turned the rusty faucet, trying not to think about him as she splashed icy water onto her face. She rinsed her hands under the water and rubbed the back of her neck. She stifled a sob and grabbed a brown paper towel. Its rough surface scratched her face. She crumpled it and threw it in the waste basket by the window. It was raining outside.

"It's raining inside" she said to no one in particular. She heard someone gasp and turned around. There was a clicking echo. The door to a toilet stall opened. Ginny stood in its way. Tears stained her face. Luna stared at her. Ginny stared back. Seconds passed. Time seemed to stand still. Neither girl knew what to say to the other. Ginny raised her hands to her face and pushed back the tears. Luna didn't move. The silence was deadening. She was unsure of what to do. What could she say to the girl before her? Sorry for sleeping with your boyfriend? I was just trying to help? She sincerely doubted it would help the situation any. It surely would not comfort her friend. Were they still friends? How could they be, after what she did? He did, she thought. But still…

"Do you love him?"

Luna looked up, surprised.

"What?" She asked, her voice wavering.

"Do you love him?" Ginny repeated slowly, softly. Luna bit her lip and stared at the floor. She nodded slightly, tears welling up.

"So do I." Ginny said, raising her eyes to meet Luna's. She had a fierce look to her, Luna backed away. She felt the wall come up against her back. Her hand wrapped itself instinctively around her wand inside her cloak. Ginny was the closest friend she had, but she would not allow herself to be hurt. Not again.

Luna breathed in deeply. She watched Ginny hesitate. She seemed unsure of herself. Luna took the opportunity and shoved her out of the way, escaping from the horrible awkwardness the situation bled. Ginny grabbed her arm and pulled her around. Luna narrowed her eyes at Ginny.

"Let me go." She whispered, her voice laced with poison.

"You will not hurt him." Ginny hissed.

"Excuse me?"

"You will not hurt him" Ginny repeated.

Luna jerked her arm from Ginny's grip. The red-headed girl glowered at her.

"I couldn't if I tried." Luna said with scorn.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means he hate me! It means he regrets everything! He wishes he never slept with me, in fact, he wishes I had been you. It means, that no matter how much I love him, no matter how hard I try, he will never want me." Luna finished with a breath. She could feel tears welling up again and didn't wish Ginny to be present for them.

Luna turned her head away and walked out the door. Her stomach was growling irritably at her, she was hungry. She looked at the doors to the Great Hall. She couldn't go in there, he probably hadn't left yet. Luna knew if she didn't eat soon she would likely pass out or vomit, but her stomach would have to wait. She didn't have the strength to be near him right now. She could feel her life being pulled out from under her. Every thing was spinning away so fast and she couldn't grab hold, however hard she tried. All she wanted to do was scream at the top of her lungs, and yet she contained herself, praying hard the worse had come and passed.

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Harry removed himself from the table unenthusiastically, throwing down his toast. He couldn't look at it any longer. He needed that hangover potion, and no longer cared if he had to explain why. He staggered through the halls, trying to avoid any form of light. Since when did Hogwarts have so many east facing windows anyway? He wondered if he'd be able to get away with just obliviating himself and everyone who knew. He was forced to disregard the idea as ideal, though in reality ideal would be if he had just found Ginny first, or had never gone to the Hogshead and ordered up a few firewhiskys. He was underage, but had not been refused. He was, after all, the Chosen One. The job title came with benefits. Though how it could now be regard as a benefit was beyond all thought possible. He forced any and all memories of the previous night out of his head as he approached the hospital wing. He stood outside the door, not wanting to go in. I'm Harry Potter, he thought. No one is going to expel or arrest me. Not for having some hard liquor underage, they won't! And if they did they sure as hell wouldn't snap my wand! Who would save their sorry asses then? I'm in the clear. They can't touch me. He shook his head again, possibly too hard as he felt the throbbing increase. He walked into the hospital wing and looked around for Madam Pomfrey. The place looked rather empty now that Bill Weasley and the others injured that night had left. Madam Pomfrey strode out of her office and gave him a one-over. She scowled at him.

"Fire Whiskey was it?" She asked.

How the hell did she know? he thought.

"I can smell it on you a mile away! You think one good wash would fix that?"

Someone's in a foul mood today, Harry thought sarcastically as Madam Pomfrey busied herself in her cupboard. She sighed deeply and came out with a small potion.

"Go to your room, lie down, and take this" She said, thrusting it at him. She stalked away angrily mumbling about drinks and how she was going to have to have a talk with the bartenders in town.

Harry grabbed the potion and swallowed it in a single gulp. It was cool on his throat. He could feel it all the way down, where it coated his stomach like hot milk on a winters' eve. His head seemed to slow and he felt drowsy. That's right, she said take it to bed first, he remembered. Oh well. He felt for the walls and followed them down the hall, his sight getting blurry. He heard a meowing sound and looked down, just in time to trip over Mrs. Norris. Not he cared; he had passed out before he ever hit the floor. The empty glass vial shattered to a million separate pieces. Madam Pomfrey dashed out of her office and looked down at Harry. She shook her head in despair and pulled out her wand. She levitated him back into the hospital wing and than proceeded to clean up the mess, ignoring the cat. She looked over at Harry, than disappeared back into her study.

Harry woke up five hours later in utter confusion. He looked around at the sterilized white walls and leaned back. The hospital wing. He knew it too well. He rolled over to his side and sat up. It was then he noticed the pounding in his head had calmed down to a dull pulsation. His stomach, though now eating itself in hunger, was no longer churning from the alcohol. Madam Pomfrey looked out of her office door. Harry swore she must have some telepathic link to her head telling her exactly what was going on at all times in her ward. How else would she know he had just woken up? She pushed a bowl of white rice toward him. He picked it up and ate a few bites, staring off into the space beside her. He could hear her rattling on about something, students not following directions, or the ministry not giving the school funds for hangover potions. He ignored her and finished up his rice. When he had cleared the bowl, he put it down and made to get up. He needed to use the lavatory. Madam Pomfrey closed her mouth mid sentence and stopped him. She gave him a pass back to the common room and told him he was to be done packing by three pm. That was when the students were to be sent home. He looked at his watch. It read one pm. He had plenty of time.

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_(A/N): REVIEW!_

_I'm not as witty as other people, so I have no idea what else to write._

_Byes! _

_and remember... REVIEW!_


	4. Chapter 4

_(A/N): Look! An update! Yey me! It's my longest one yet and it only took me 3 days to write! I so totally rock. Anyway, thanks goes to:_

**Chin Yen**_: Thank you for your complement_

**absolutleyfabulous:**_ and you said poor Luna then..._

_And thats really it, I didn't give you all all that much time to review, though I am hoping for more soon._

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Harry left the hospital wing in a hurry. He wanted to get away from Madam Pomfrey's patronizing stares. He knew where he was headed; to where he always goes to relieve his stress: the quidditch pitch. The rush from flying could calm him like nothing else. When he was on his broom, the wind rushing past him, he was able to forget, to put behind him the pain, the deaths, the stress of being the one the entire wizarding world looked to.

Harry let his feet carry him; they knew where to go. He looked around at the paintings, portraits, and statues as he went. It was likely his last time seeing them. He wasn't coming back, not next year. He had Voldemort to face; he had a war to conquer.

The halls were quiet, students were required to stay within the confines of their common rooms, save for meals. There was too much fear, too much pain. Parents were dying; sisters were being raped, brothers torn apart. And now with Dumbledore dead, all hope had plummeted into the depths of hell.

Harry felt dizzy. The rice had done nothing more than expand in his stomach, he needed protein. He decided to stop in the great hall before going out; he had to pass it to get outside anyway.

Harry walked through the charms corridor and down the marble stairs just in time to see Ginny, Hermione, and Ron walk out of the great hall.

"Fuck" Harry muttered under his breath, as his feet hit the floor of the entrance hall. Ginny turned and saw him, standing there.

"C'mon Ginny," Hermione mumbled, taking her elbow and leading her in another direction. Ginny pulled her arm away.

"No, no I want to see him; I have some things to say to him." Ginny walked away from Hermione and Ron, and up to Harry. For a second they stood there, staring at each other. Then Ginny slapped him across the face. Harry staggered, and looked at her surprised.

"Fuck you, asshole" She said, than walked past him, up the marble stairs. Ron and Hermione followed, Hermione Glaring at Harry, Ron avoiding his gaze.

Harry let out his breath; he hadn't realized he'd been holding it. Sighing, he turned and walked into the great hall. After swallowing down a cheese sandwich, and grabbing another for the walk, he left the castle in favor of the quidditch pitch.

Harry ignored the rain, allowing himself to be soaked to the bone. He walked to the broom closet and grabbed his Firebolt. Straddling it, he kicked off on the ground and felt the rush of flying. He let himself forget what happened, forget himself. He flew in circles, did loops, dived to the ground and rolled over.

He didn't know how long he was out there, only that at some point Professor McGonagall came out and got his attention, signaling that it was time for him to come down. The carriages were here, ready for what students remained.

She told him she had someone pack his things, and they were already put away. Harry nodded, and let her lead him away. He sat in a carriage alone, and watched from the window as he rode away from the one place he could ever truly call home.

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Luna sat on the train as it rode south. She had a compartment to herself; so many kids had left Hogwarts already most of the compartments were empty. She had seen Harry get on the train. He had headed toward the back. She found a compartment in the front. She now stared out the window, into the storm. How is it possible, she thought, that everything got messed up so fast?

The rain was raging against the train in a war of its own creation. Branches of lightning forked throughout the sky, illuminating the night. The thunder calmed her; it reminded her of her mother.

Her mother had loved stormy nights. Sometimes she would sit outside on the porch, watching the rain fall. Luna had loved those nights. She would sit on the porch swing between her parents for hours, eventually falling asleep in their arms. Things had been so less complicated then.

It had rained during her mother's funeral, when she was nine. It was just a drizzle, a last tribute to the woman. That was the last time she had seen him, she remembered, before he went away, before everything became sad.

He had come back of course, four years later. He was visiting from France over the summer. His mother still refused to come back, she hadn't since the funeral.

She was thirteen when it happened. He had been older than her, almost seventeen. She had matured in the time since they were last together, they both had. She was no longer his baby cousin, playing tag in the yard or searching for razbungles in the garden. There had been an instant attraction, almost painful. She wanted to ignore it, tried to ignore it.

She had become closer to her father since her mother's death. They needed each other, pulled comfort from one another. He had begun taking her with him to interviews for his magazine, letting her ask questions when she wanted, and sometimes let her conduct the interview herself. She looked up to him, worshiped him almost. Her mother had been in Gryffindor, her father in Ravenclaw. They used to argue – jokingly of course- over whose house was better. Luna never could decide, but was happy to be placed in the same as her father.

When he had come back, her cousin, to visit, he had laughed at her. He thought she should not have been placed in Ravenclaw, her believing in Nargles and other imaginary creatures. She hit him with a strong Levicorpus- much higher magic than any student going into her third year should know. He of course stopped laughing, and looked at her in a different manner. Once he managed to right himself, he ran after her and asked her where she had learned the spell. She just shrugged and kept walking into the house. She became interesting that day, a new sort of enigma to solve.

They spent the whole summer together, the age gap negligible. Luna was mature, old. Maybe not physically, but mentally, spiritually. She already knew higher magic than many grown witches and wizards. She had explained that her parents had taught her most of it when she was growing up, home schooling her from a very young age. He became attracted to her, unconsciously watching her every minute he could.

The last week of summer Luna's father, her cousin, and she went to Majorca, an island off the coast of Spain. Her cousin's parents met up with them on the second day. They spent the holiday going to museums, restaurants, the beach, and to the markets. Luna was the happiest she had been in years, her childhood memories coming back to her. The two families used to always go there during the summer, before her mother had died.

The rain was still coming down heavy. Luna closed her eyes and curled up on the seat. She was tired, she wanted to sleep. She didn't want to remember. It hurt to remember.

The last night of holiday the three adults had gone out for a late dinner and after for drinks. He had tried to engage her in a game; wizarding chess. He was determined to beat her once in the game, before he left to go home to France. The game was abandoned before she had taken as much as a pawn.

The game pieces lay scattered across the floor, cursing as Luna was led into the bedroom. He kissed her face, neck, and palms. She trembled at his touch. He ran his fingers threw her waist length hair and she leaned back on the bed. He climbed on top of her and she cried out in pain.

A tear trickled down her cheek. Luna pulled her sweater tight around her and hid her face in her arms, rocking in harmony with the train.

It hadn't lasted long, and he fell asleep shortly afterwards. She crawled out from under him and walked to the bathroom. She looked away from the mirror and sat on the toilet. She looked into it when she was done. It was tinted with blood. She flushed and ran a shower. After scrubbing herself mercilessly she turned the water off, and wrapped a towel around herself. She scourgified the bed, levitating him as she did. Still he slept. She grabbed her clothes and left the room, shifting quietly into her own. She closed the door behind her and slipped under the covers. As soon as she lay in the bed, the tears came. She cried herself to sleep that night.

The next day she avoided her cousin, barely giving him a hug goodbye. She packed her things neatly into her trunk, and at five pm her father side-along apparated her to Hogsmeade, where she met the train from Kings Cross, joining her fellow students to Hogwarts. It was the first day of her third year. Two days later she was informed by owl that her cousin had committed suicide. He left a note for her:

_Dear Luna,_

_It is wrong for me to write you this, for you to find out as you will what I have done to myself. It is, I believe, far less immoral than what I did to you. Despite what you may think, I did hear you cry that night, and felt shame for what I had done. Regardless of your tremendous intelligence and maturity, you are still a child, and I have defiled you. I cannot live, knowing what I did. If you are reading this, than I am walking another world now. I just want you to know that I love you, and am sorry._

* * *

_(A/N): Review damn it! I need more reviews!_

_Sigh._

_Loves to those who review_

_Glares at SilverFerret_

_Will Smith is hot._

_Byes!  
Emma_


	5. Chapter 5

_(A/N): I know, I know, I know, could I have_ taken _any longer? And the answer is, probably not. Anyway, thank you all for your loverly reviews. I will now commence with the personal thanks:_

**Faith Akiyama:**_ Thanks!_

**Ana:**_ niceness is hard... and I only understood about half of what you wrote, sorry. Thanks for the review though!_

**WriterChic05:**_ Hey Crystal! lol, thanks, hows it going?_

**mmm alicia love:**_ Very little fluff, thats for sure. And I agree, it does get nauseating after a while. Thank you for the compliment, and I am good, aren't I? lol._

**WolfSpirt:**_ It kind of is one big heartbreak, but than only about six or seven hours has passed in the entirety of the fic, so I don't know. Hermione thinks a lot. And like I said, only about six or seven hours have passed, she hasn't had a ton of time to do any confrontations, especially if Luna was in her common room most of the day..._

**Anna:**_ Yey detail! I heart detail- I have issues. lol. yea. um, yea. thank you!_

**mysockisonfire:**_ lol, yea, it took me WAY too long to figure out how to turn on anonymous reviews. And I plan on haveing more of Lunas background come out in the next chapter maybe, possibly the one after. It depends on who's talking to me at the minute... Luna talks the most. Harry likes to be a pain in the ass about that. Thanks and I hope I did well on my SATs too!_

**absolutleyfabulous:**_ awkwardness, yes -strokes chin-_

**darkstalkerking**_:Thank you!_

**Harpy Prince:**_ Very angsty indeed. As for the ship, I have no idea. The characters talk, and I type. For example, Harry and Ron in the next scene, I was like WTF? when I was done typing it all. Not what I expected in the slightest._

**Miss-Cody-James:**_ Yes, her cousin. Who he is, is unimportant now, as he is dead. His purpose in life (as far as I'm concerned) is for Luna to lose her virginity to, and to be one- I mean, a bad memory she suppresses, causing her to be who she is today._

_Look at all those reviews! You guys rock! For that, you get a post._

* * *

Luna buried her head into the creases of the seat she lay on. Her shoulders shook with every trembling breath she took. She could live with the former, understood the former. But how could she live with herself after the latter? The suicide? She went on living everyday and he was dead. She couldn't do it, she never could. And so she pushed it back again, hid it from herself, with all the other memories. She wouldn't remember; she couldn't deal with it, none of it. It was too hard.

She breathed in deeply, inhaling the stale scent of the upholstery. She pulled her sweater tighter around her, her knees closer to her chest, and tried to stop her tears from sliding down her face. She could hear footsteps outside in the corridor; the prefects must be doing rounds. She didn't want them to come in, someone always came in. Sometimes they weren't prefects, just students bored, needing something, or someone, to laugh at. She would ignore them. It was better to ignore them.

This time it was a prefect, not that Luna noticed, or turned to look. The compartment door slid open and Luna concentrated on being invisible. She knew she wasn't, that if anyone looked close enough they could see her, but no one ever looked that hard. No one cared to.

The figure stood in the doorway, and stared at her. Luna could feel the eyes boring into her, tearing her apart. She tried to stay intact.

Had Luna looked, she would have seen Hermione scan the compartment twice, the second time just barely catching the figure in blue, curled in the fetal position, trying so hard to remain invisible, obviously crying. Hermione stood for a minute, watching her. She was torn between pity and disgust. Ultimately she choose to act on neither, and shut the door. Luna heard her step away. She let out a sigh of relief.

----

Hermione turned from the girl when she felt a tap on her shoulder. Ron was signaling they needed to move on. She nodded and followed him to the next compartment. They were doing rounds. Most of the train was empty, save for a few compartments. Those were packed with students, silent, wands within reach. Hermione shook her head, it was all so stupid. Why would Voldemort attack a train with underage students on it anyway? Because Harry Potter is on it, she answered herself.

She felt Ron's arm snake around her waist and she leaned into him. She was tired, and didn't feel like being responsible for all these students right now. Neither she, nor Ron had gotten much sleep last night; Ron hadn't anywhere to go, and wasn't able to get up to the girls dorms, and Ginny was hysterical, so they stayed in the common room with her over night.

The two of them checked the remaining compartments, save for Harry's. Ron said he would do that one alone. He gave her a swift kiss on the cheek, his lips soft and warm. She slid the door shut gently, and joined Ginny. She told Ginny that Ron was speaking to Harry, and the two girls sat in silence, each wondering what Ron was planning to say.

"I hope he hits him" Ginny thought aloud. Hermione half wondered if this was fair, but then she too had acted rashly in the moment. They _had_ after all, broken up…

Hermione gave Ginny a quick hug, and then took out her journal. She scribbled a few words on it quickly, and handed it to Ginny, who took it warily. It read:

_Dear Harry_,

The rest of the page was blank.

"What's this?" She asked Hermione, unsure of what her friend meant of the peculiar offering.

"Write him a letter. Whether or not you give it to him is your decision. Just write the letter, it'll help you vent." Hermione answered, thrusting her quill into the girls' hand.

Ginny sighed, and turned away.

"I don't know what to say to him." She admitted.

"It doesn't matter. Just start writing, and let it come out. Write from your heart. He doesn't need to read it, if you don't want him to."

Ginny nodded, and stared at the blank piece of parchment before her. It was mocking her in its silence. She wanted it to scream. She put the tip of the quill in ink, and began scratching the paper.

----

Harry sat on the train and stared out the window. The fog was increasing; the dementors must be on the rise, because on top of all his personal issues he needed to worry about that now too. Harry wondered what life would have been like, had Voldemort never attacked his family; he could be sitting with Ginny right now, his arm around her, looking forward to going home, seeing his parents, Sirius, and Remus. Dumbledore would be alive, and he wouldn't have his life repeatedly attacked… But this was just wishful thinking. Naturally none of this could happen, instead he had to take all of life's fucking lemons and what, make lemonade? Doubtful.

The dinner cart should be coming around soon, it was getting late. What little of the sun that had been visible earlier, had now sunk into the horizon. Harry looked away, and back to the book he had been staring at the past hour. He read the first line again. He looked up when he thought he had heard a noise outside his compartment. Maybe the food was finally here? But the sound stopped, was silenced by a shutting door, so he turned back to his book. He read the first line again. He heard footsteps again, and looked up from his book. He couldn't concentrate. Feet shuffled outside the door, than it slid open, revealing a tense Ron.

Harry shut his book and put it aside, he'd been wondering when Ron would visit him. The silence hung heavily in the air. Harry broke it.

"Here to make a eunuch of me?"

"No- good idea though" Ron said, grinning despite himself.

"I suppose you're here to beat me up in the name of your sister's honor, or some shit like that then?"

"Listen, I just want to know what happened."

"No you don't- you want to hit me."

"Well, yes, but you're my best friend so I'm going to listen to what you have to say, then hit you. Sound good?"

Harry squinted, and looked at Ron suspiciously.

"Just, tell me what happened. We were waiting for you after the funeral in the common room, Hermione and me. Ginny too, she went up to get a sweatshirt though. And then you came in, with Loony Lovegood, drunk (obviously), and took her up to our room? And of course that had to be the moment my sister walked in. But bloody hell Harry, what were you thinking?"

"I wasn't thinking, or I wouldn't have done it. I went to the Hogshead after the funeral, to clear my head, and one thing led to another... and suddenly I was waking up nauseous as hell with a pounding headache, with no memory of last night, except for about five minutes of it, which was just enough to realized how fucked up I am, and that's about it."

"Hmm. So how was it?"

"How was what?"

"Sex! How was it?"

"I don't know, I don't remember any of it, it wasn't exactly a magical evening. So, wait. Are you mad at me?"

"Well you made my sister cry, so yes. But I'm still happy it wasn't her up there with you, because if you'd run into her first, than I WOULD make a eunuch out of you."

When the dinner cart eventually did arrive, Harry and Ron bought a few items, and ate them quietly. There was still tension in the air, but they could talk at least, now. The rest of the ride home felt short, in comparison to the rest of the day. When the train slid into Kings Cross, Harry and Ron stood up, and grabbed their trunks.

"We're still coming with you, you know." Ron said, looking over his shoulder at Harry.

"Who? Where?"

"Me and Hermione, to the Dursleys. We said we would, that hasn't changed."

"She is talking to me then?"

"No. But she's coming."

Harry nodded. He was surprisingly grateful; he didn't have to do it all alone. He wondered what his uncle's response would be.

* * *

_(A/N): Not my best work, but as it's a transitionary chapter, it wouldn't be. The next chapter couldn't happen without this one, so therefore it is important, even if a bit uneventful._

_For those who don't know, a eunuch is defined by as_: A man or boy whose testes have been removed or have never developed.

_Pleasant thought, isn't it?_

_lol_

_anyway, review please!_

_Thanks!_

_Emma_


	6. Chapter 6

_(A/N): Finally! Lol. Sorry this took so long to get up, I meant to have it posted on Sunday, but I got sick, so I didn't. Yea. Anyways, this is officailly my longest post yet. 2088 words. I'm very proud of myself. And now to thank my reviewers..._

**Dark Syaoran:** _Thanks for the review! I laughed when I read it..._

**GiR:** _Thanks! Lol, I'm going to try to update more... really I am!_

**crzyangelchic**: _I don't know if Harry and Luna are impossible, I just think that they're really, REALLY unlikely... yeah. Thank you for reviewing! Yeah, Harry had a dirty mouth, though thats slightly more because I do, and honestly, its the morning, and he had a hangover, and he just realized that not only did he lose his virginity, he lost it to Luna, who isn't the one he loves. I'd be a bit pissy too. lol._

**mundum:**_ yeah, everyone says Luna is a bit OoC. Maybe, definitly in chapter 3, but I don't think its too far off. She hasn't really said all that much in the present time, and we don't know what she thinks in the HP books... lol- sorry. defending my work too much. lol. thanks for reviewing!_

**mysockisonfire**: _This ones not so short! lol. Lunas not even mentioned in this one, it's all Harry and Hermione. -nods-. I'm trying to feature Harry more, but we already know so much about him from the books, that its hard to shine any new light onto him. For me at least._

**Lily Evans Potter Black Lupin:** _Yea, Harry is being a git._

**Harpy Prince:** _lol. hm. No, its all me writing. My friend and I say that when writing comes really natural, to the point where the story may take turns you didn't see coming, its the character writing through you. Basically, it is sort of freestyle- I wrote this post in one sitting. I'm currently planning on a bit of a love triangle between Harry, Ginny, and Luna, but shhh! You didn't hear that from me!_

**absolutelyfabulous**: _ch. 7! (probably-hopefully) its all very carefully planned out (meaning I have a vague idea of whats to come). lol. _

_And I believe thats all my loverly reviewers! Hope you like the next chapter!_

* * *

Hermione exited the scarlet train with Ginny, their trunks bewitched to follow behind them. Hermione kept half an eye on the trunks, making sure they didn't hit anyone, though there was one person she didn't mind if they did hit. She looked around for a sign of Ron, or for a sea of red that would be the Weasley's.

Ginny pointed the way and Hermione nodded numbly. Her stomach was in knots, summer was really here. She didn't want it to be, she wasn't ready for it to be. She wondered what it would be like, to be normal; to spend her summer at the beach with her friends, with Ron. She didn't want to be chasing dark lords and having her life and the lives of those she loved threatened every other day. It was too painful.

Hermione had owled her parents the other day, telling them not to come to Kings Cross; she would be spending her holiday at Harry's aunts and uncles house in Little Winging. They had been disappointed, to say the least. She had not told them why she would not be coming home. They needn't know that she didn't plan to return to Hogwarts, that instead she was to search for Horcruxes with Harry and Ron. She told them nothing; she did not want to worry them.

Ginny grabbed a cart and Hermione lowered their trunks onto it; they could not very well just burst through a brick wall into muggle Kings Cross, trunks floating lazily behind them. It was easy enough to find everyone, as they made up the largest group of people who most obviously did not belong.

It looked to Hermione as though half the Order had shown up to see them home. Mr. Weasley stood with Bill, Fred, George, Remus, Tonks, Mundungus, Mad-Eye Moody, and a few others Hermione wasn't sure she recognized were all there. Harry and Ron were already with them, and hugs were going around.

"Where's mum?" Ginny asked, walking up to the crowd.

"With Fleur and her mom, looking at flower arrangements. They can't decide on orchids, roses, or a combination for the bridal bouquet." Bill answered. He was looking much healthier Hermione noticed, though the scars remained. She tried not to stare; she didn't want to be rude.

Everyone chatted around her with feigned happiness, and she felt lost in the swarm of lies and half-truths. Everyone avoided speaking of Dumbledore, of Snape, and of the rising death toll. She plastered a smile across her face, and went along with the charade. Her body went through the motions and her mind drifted elsewhere.

It was unbearably hot in the station, and she needed some fresh air. She looked around for Ron, he was still by Harry. He looked over at her and she waved weakly. He grinned at her, and signaled towards Harry's uncle, who was watching them from a distance, trying to look as though he was simply passing time, reading a newspaper. It was upside-down. Ron laughed and she stifled a giggle; it wasn't really as funny as it seemed.

Ginny glanced in the direction Hermione was looking towards, and sighed.

"You're really going to live at that mans house for a month?"

Hermione nodded, not much looking forward to it. She'd much rather be going to the Burrow.

"Hmm" Ginny answered, pursing her lips together, not unlike Professor McGonagall. "Fine then, will you give this to Harry for me then? When you get there?" She handed Hermione the letter she wrote on the train. It was sealed tightly in an envelope. Hermione took it and placed it carefully in her bag, than embraced Ginny warmly.

"I'll miss you- write to me okay?"

"Be safe" was all Ginny could say.

----

Harry waited for Hermione to walk over, than led her, Ron, Mr. Weasley, Mad-Eye and Remus over to his uncle, who was positively trembling. Mr. Dursley stood up. Harry noticed as his uncle tried to make himself look larger, more intimidating. Harry shook his head in humor, and plopped his trunk down in front of his uncle.

Mr. Weasley, Mad-Eye, and Lupin took Harry's uncle to the side, and explained to him that Hermione and Ron would be staying at his house for the month of July as well. He did not look pleased. In fact, his face was turning rather purple.

"What are we going to do if he says no?" Hermione whispered to no one in particular.

Harry shrugged. He didn't really think it was an issue; his uncle would be too terrified to say no more than a few times.

Harry couldn't decide if he was looking forward to the coming weekend. It was Bill and Fleur's wedding, and the three of them would be staying at the Burrow for two nights, to help set up for the reception. It was to be held in the Weasley's yard. The Burrow had always been a safe haven for him, but now, with Ginny, he didn't know what to expect.

Mr. Weasley, Mad-Eye, and Lupin finished their talk with Harry's uncle, and came over to Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Mr. Weasley addressed them first.

"Everything is settled now. Ron will share Harry's room, and Hermione can have their spare. We expect a letter everyday, assuring us that you are staying together, and not doing anything dangerous. Members of the Order will randomly check in with you guys, so don't wander far. Hermione, we know that you can legally do magic now, but we would like you to please keep it to a minimum; we don't want to scare the pants off of the muggles. It is very generous of them to allow you to stay with them for the next few weeks. And don't give any reason for Molly to have to bring you home, she's been under enough stress as it is lately. Well, I think that covers just about everything. Be good, stay safe. You know where to find us if you need us."

Mad-Eye Moody clasped his hands together, and looked over the three of them quickly.

"Right. You will be leaving in Dursleys vehicle. He doesn't know it, but a few of the Order will be following you, by broomstick. We just need to get you there safely, than we will leave. Ready to go?"

Harry nodded.

Harry picked up his cart and dropped it on top of Hermione's. Ron did the same. After a few grunts from Harry's uncle, they were led out to the car. Harry lifted the trunks into the rear of the car, than took a seat up front, next to his uncle. Hermione and Ron sat in the back. The entire ride home was largely uncomfortable. Harry's uncle didn't utter a single word the entire way home.

When they finally reached the house, Uncle Vernon left the trio to unload their things, and went inside to talk to his wife. They had major issues to discuss.

---

Hermione spent most of the evening in Harry's room with Ron. She had come to an unspoken agreement with herself to pretend nothing had happened, and that she was still on good terms with Harry. She was unwanted enough it the house. She conjured up an extra bed for Ron, who was now sitting on it twirling his wand between his fingers.

"I can legally do magic now too, you know. My birthday was months ago." He said to no one in particular.

"So?" Harry asked.

"So no one said anything to me about it. They told Hermione to keep her magic down, but not me."

"That's because you still act like a kid, so they have trouble realizing you aren't" Hermione answered, a bit irritable. She didn't like being in this house, it gave her the creeps. It was too clean, even for her liking. She kept looking for a way to slip the letter Ginny gave her to Harry, when he wasn't looking, but she was having a hard time finding the right time.

It was getting late, so Hermione finally decided to turn in for the night. She announced she was going to bed, and asked Harry if he had any tooth paste she could borrow. He said sure, and motioned for them to follow him. He walked out the door, closely followed by Ron. Hermione took the moment to stuff the letter under Harry's pillow, than followed him to the bathroom, where she proceeded to brush her teeth.

---

Harry had a hard time falling asleep that night; he kept having nightmares. In one his dreams he could see Ginny, tied to a gravestone as he had been in his fourth year, struggling against the cruciatus curse as Voldemort laughed in his cold, high-pitched manner in the background. In another one of his dreams he was tied to the gravestone, and was forced to watch the Death Eaters brutally rape Ginny over and over again, as she cried and bled, naked against the damp, dark earth.

He'd been having these visions for weeks, but couldn't tell anyone. He didn't want anyone to worry, or to take them for more than they were. He could just see Mrs. Weasley carting her off to live in Romania with Charley. Actually, he thought, that might not be a bad idea. At least then she would be safe.

He turned onto his side, and heard a rustle from under his pillow. He felt under it, and pulled out an envelope. Not wanting to wake Ron, Harry slid out of bed, and tip-toed to the bathroom. He flicked on the lights and felt the top layer of his retinas burn off. He closed his eyes until the pain passed, than stared at the envelope. He flipped it over and saw his name written hastily across the back of it. It was Ginny's handwriting, he'd recognize it anywhere. He turned the envelope over again and tore the seal, pulling out the letter as quickly as he could. He read it twice, than huddled on the tile floor, holding his head in his arms, and sobbed.

_Dear Harry,_

_Hermione told me I should write to you, to tell you how I feel. She says I need to vent. I would rather hit you again, to be honest. What I really want to know is, how can you do this to me? Why would you do this to me? You can tell me all you want that you broke it off to keep from hurting me, but this hurts way more than anything Voldemort could ever throw at me. I can promise you that much._

_I cried that night, when you broke up with me. Did you know that? Did you know that I love you, that I want to kill you for hurting me, and for not coming to me last night to comfort you? God Harry! We were supposed to lose it together! To each other! How would you feel if I told you I slept with Dean? You would hate it; I know you would. You would feel as though your heart dropped and shattered on the floor. This is how I feel. I feel as though my heart has deep cracks in it, and I don't know how to mend them. _

_I lost a good friend because of you. I'm angry at her for going with you, but I can understand where she is coming from. I would have gone with you too. But you don't even love her, do you love anyone? Do you love me? I don't think that you do, because I feel that if you truly did, you would not have gone up with her last night._

_I have always seen you as a truth; that you would always be there, so I'm having trouble understanding how you could betray me. My stomach is churning up with all these emotions, which just get translated into nonsense in my head. I don't know what to do, what to think. _

_I can't comprehend how I feel about you anymore, I don't know if I hate you because I feel cheated, or if I can still love you, despite it. _

_I do, I do still love you, much as I wish otherwise. And I wish that I could have told you in a more romantic way, but as it is, I love you. I want to kick you where the sun doesn't shine, but I love you. _

_We need to talk._

_Ginny_

_

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_

(A/N): Review please! I'll give you cookies!

Loves,

Emma


	7. Chapter 7

_(A/N): For some reason this one took me a while to write. Its a tad slow at the beginning, but I left it off at a pretty intense part. And now to thank my reviewers._

**Harpy Prince:** _Love triangle! Triangle!_

**absolutleyfabulous:** _Thanks! And I make no promises (mostly because I haven't quite figured out how I will end the story yet)._

**Yoyoyo123:**_ lol._ _The next chapter is now._

**BusBuddies**:_ Naturally I feel it necessary to defend my own work, and so I ask you to please bear with me._

_ I understand where you are coming from, when you tell me I have grammar errors running rampant. I do have a few sentence fragments, but for the most part it is fine. A lot of what you probably think are erroneous I find to be stylistic. The rules of grammar are lax in fiction, and what would be considered an error in nonfiction, in fiction is permissible._

_ I agree with you on your point about Mad-Eye and Vernon Dursley. Unfortunately I let my laziness and dislike for that chapter all together get to me, and I could have elaborated far more than I did. Vernon was threatened, but I may not have let that come across as strongly as I had intended. _

_ I strongly dislike original characters, so I would never do that. And as I am following HBP, it is illogical for me to call it AU. _

_On the OOCness (pretend that's a word), yes, it is a bit. I'm not JKR, so there's only so much I can do, as we don't honestly know what Luna thinks._

_ The cursing… I'm an American, what can I say? I know I shouldn't let it affect my writing, but it does. It would any writer, whatever their nationality. People write about what they know, and I grew up in New York. People curse._

_ The fourth chapter, where Luna is on the train, is my favorite so far. Yes, you were left in the dark about a lot of what was going on. Luna is struggling to suppress her memories, and will only let pieces out at a time. It would be unrealistic for her to let go of everything at once; people don't do that. _

_ Swiss cheese! I laughed when I read that. I prefer to call it loose ends. Don't worry; everything will come together, just give it time. _

* * *

Luna stood at the stove and watched blue-black flames lick the bottom of the pot. She had forgotten what she had planned on making. This wasn't the first time, either. Last night she'd put on a pot of water to boil, and walked out of the room. She was forced back in only when she heard the kettles insistent wail from her room upstairs. A cloud of steam singed her hand when she pulled the top off to still its whistle.

She looked around the kitchen in hopes of remembering what she was making, but there was nothing save for an open newspaper on the table. She walked over to it and folded the paper, tucking it under a pile of magazines. She did not need more deaths staring up at her face. This morning was bad enough as it was.

She'd woken up to find spotted blood on her bed sheets, a full two weeks earlier than she'd expected. While she'd been scrubbing the sheets under cool water in the laundry room, her father came in to remind her they had to attend the Weasley/Delacore wedding that afternoon. As though she needed reminding.

She was feeling torn between wanting to go to the wedding, and dreading it. She wanted to see Harry again, but it was just so awkward.

Luna poured herself a glass of cranberry juice and walked up to her room. Her dress was hanging on her closet door. She sipped her juice and sat back on her bed, the sheets in a pile waiting for her to put them back properly. She ignored them and stared at the dress instead. It was a dark gray, with ribbon straps and waistband. It had come with two small bows where the straps met the dress, but she had torn them off. Bows did not shag boys. The edges of the dress were ruffled, they looked torn. It was what had first drawn her to the dress. It was lonely and broken; like her.

Luna looked at the clock and stood up; she had to begin to get ready for the party; the wedding was a huge affair, and she could not go looking as bleary eyed and tired as she was. She quickly ran a shower and shampooed her greasy hair. She hadn't felt the need to wash since she returned from Hogwarts over a week ago, and had let herself get visibly dirty.

She stepped out of the shower and onto the cold white tile when her skin regained its natural pink. She towel dried her hair, than wrapped the towel around her body, walking back into her room. After clipping her hair off her face, Luna slipped into her dress and put in a pair of earrings shaped as silver wedding bells. They swung back and forth, clinking each other, ringing as bells often do. They sounded cheerful; Luna silenced them. She looked around for her bracelet, and found it on the floor by her unpacked trunk. The strawberry charm was missing. She replaced it with a charm of a boot.

Luna walked down to the kitchen when she had finished readying herself, to wait for her father. He would apparate the two of them to the wedding. She glanced over to the stove and quickly turned it off. She had to be more careful.

She sat at the table and picked up the latest issue of The Quibbler, opening to the first page to read the dedication. Every issue was dedicated to her mother; the magazine had been her dream. It always said the same thing: i_To Rosamond, my love, my life, my soul mate./i. _Luna ran her fingers over the too familiar words, but shut it and stood quickly when her father walked into the room.

"Luna, you look just like your mother. When did you become so beautiful?"

Luna smiled; her father was always like this.

"Are you ready?" He asked her.

"Yes,"

He offered his arm to her, and she took it. She felt herself be pulled though a narrow tube, sucking her to an internal abyss. She hated apparation in all its forms.

They 'popped' onto the Weasley lawn where they were quickly greeted and ushered away, to allow for other guests to arrive. Everything seemed to be a bit hectic, but that was to be expected with such a large number of people attending.

Not that Luna knew it, but the entire Order of the Phoenix were in attendance, as well as many ministry workers, all Weasley and Delacore family members, close friends, and neighbors. The Weasley yard had been extended to fit the large number of people as comfortably as possible, and was decorated with a flurry of white orchids, with fairies waiting patiently until nightfall to sparkle. White wooden folding chairs sat in rows facing a large white wedding arch, vines creeping up its side. Luna barely registered any of this as she searched the crowds for Harry.

"Luna! Hey, Luna!" She heard her name be hollered out. Turning to see who was calling, Luna spotted Neville limping over, smiling at her. She waved at him politely. When he finally reached her, they exchanged greetings, and Luna introduced him to her father, who was still standing at her side. Her father shook Neville's hand, than saw some men he knew gathered around the groom, and, misinterpreting Luna's discomfort for a schoolgirl crush, murmured something about going to chat with them, leaving Luna alone with Neville.

"How's your leg doing?"

"Better. My grandmother wasn't too pleased when she saw it though"

"No, I'd expect not. Is your family close friends with the Weasley's?"

"Not really, my parents were in the Order of the Phoenix though, before…"

"Before they were tortured?"

Neville nodded. "You know?"

Luna shrugged, it did not matter what she knew; it would change nothing. Just as his knowing of her relations with Harry would change nothing.

"Do you think they will be starting the ceremony soon?" Neville nodded in answer, and led her to one of the seats in the rear. Luna didn't have much honor here, and Neville respected that. Luna kept an eye out for Harry, and didn't see him until he passed her to take his seat up front with the Weasley's.

The ceremony itself was simple enough, basic as its Celtic roots. Bill, garbed in dress robes lined with the Weasley tartan, held hands with Fleur, who was dressed lavishly in a Juliet inspired gown, made entirely of white silk, and trimmed with gold lace. Ginny and a blonde girl who could only be Fleur's sister, stood beside the bride in simple silver gowns with cap sleeves. Charley Weasley stood next to the groom. Mad-Eye Moody was conducting the ceremony, as he was the closest to the family who was ordained. It had been planned that Dumbledore would do the handfasting, but that was no longer possible. Mad-Eye was the only choice. At least next to him, the scars Bill wore were softened.

The couple stood, hands clasped as Mad-Eye began tying the first of six ropes around their hands, repeating the first line to the Scottish Blessing of the Elements.

"Deep peace of the running wave to you"

He tied the second rope around their hands.

"Deep peace of the flowing air to you"

He tied the third rope, and so on until the sixth.

"Deep peace of the quiet earth to you"

"Deep peace of the shining stars to you"

"Deep peace of the spirit of peace to you"

And than, quickly as it had started, Bill was pinning on a piece of his family tartan on Fleur, lifting her veil to bestow her with a kiss, and the ceremony was over.

The bride and groom walked down the aisle followed closely by the wedding party. Harry didn't look at her as he passed her, or if he did, he was so discreet about it, that she didn't see him do it.

"Are you two not talking now?" Neville asked, seeing Harry snub her, as she watched him pass. Luna ignored him, and walked away.

She circled around the crowd, to the frontyard, and sat on the steps leading into the house. Everyone was mingling now; they had an hour before dinner would be ready to serve. Luna stared at her feet. She was acting like a child and she knew it, but she didn't really care. She wasn't in the mood to socialize.

---

"Just go! She deserves an apology from you!" Hermione chastised Harry.

"She didn't have to go with me! What should I apologize for?"

"Just do it!"

--

Luna heard footsteps crunching along the gravel. She didn't look up; she knew whose they were. No one but him planted such sure footed steps, and made them sound lighthearted at the same time. He sat down next to her, and neither of them spoke for what felt like forever, but was really just a few minutes.

"I never meant for it to happen, you know."

"I know" Luna replied softly, fighting the desire to cry.

"I'm sorry, your first time shouldn't have been like that."  
"It wasn't my first time."

"I… what? er, I mean, oh." Harry mumbled, trying to decide how he felt: Relieved? Hurt? Jealous? Why would he feel jealous? It wasn't like he cared for her or anything…  
"Hmm?"

"Nothing, I just thought… Never mind"

"You thought you were my first"

"Well, yea. I just, never thought…"  
"Never thought anyone else would want me? Am I that weird that no one else would ever give me a shot? Is it that hard to conceive that maybe I actually had more experience than you? You should be glad! Imagine how bad it would be for your reputation if you, Harry Potter, had taken advantage of loony Lovegood!"

"Hey! You are just as much at fault as me! You could have just left me alone!"

"I was trying to comfort you."

"I didn't need comforting!"

"Well obviously you did as you managed to get yourself drunk and slept with the first person who crossed your path in order to alleviate your pain! Ignoring the issue will not make it go away. The deaths will always be there, and they will always hurt."

"What do you know about pain?"

"A wretched soul, bruised with adversity,  
We bid be quiet when we hear it cry;  
But were we burdened with like weight of pain,  
As much or more we should ourselves complain."

"What is that?"

"It's Shakespeare, and I know plenty about pain."

"Do you? Do you know what it feels like to grow up not knowing your parents, in a house that fears and hates you? Do you know what it feels like for your parents, your friend, your godfather, and your mentor to die? To see it happen? To hear it every time you fall asleep? Do you know what that feels like? DO YOU?"

Luna turned away from him. She wasn't going to answer.

"Well? Tell me. What could possibly have caused you so much pain; that you think you understand even an iota of my pain?"

"Leave me alone" Luna mumbled

"What?"

"Leave me alone."

"No- I want to know the answer. What pain have you seen?"

"It's nothing, go away"

"It can't be nothing, if you think its enough for you to have me figured out"

"Just, it's nothing okay? Just, leave me alone" She wouldn't look at him, she couldn't.

"Answer the question"

"Go away" Why wouldn't he go away?

"What pain Luna?"

"Leave me alone!" She tried not to cry.

"What pain?"

"Shut up shut up shut up!" Tears spilled from her eyes.

"TELL ME!"  
"NO!"  
"WHY?"  
"BECAUES SHE'S DEAD AND TELLING YOU WON'T BRING HER BACK! It was an accident, they all say it was an accident, but they didn't see it happen! The deaths you saw? They were noble; they died because they had to. My mother died because she wanted to. She didn't want to live, she rejected life and all that was in it, me included. She couldn't find another way out so she did it herself!

They say it was an accident well that bullshit. It was no accident. She knew it would kill her; she knew it because she purposely measured out every last drop of lobalug venom into her wine, than sat back on her bed, closed her eyes, and drank it. She didn't open them to see me standing there, and I did nothing to stop it. I was nine years old. I didn't know what she was doing.

They said it was a magical accident, but I know better. She always labeled everything perfectly. It was no accident. You can tell me all you want about how you know pain; you know nothing. Nothing."

* * *

_(A/N): Intense moment. I felt it was the best place to cut. _

_**Lobalug** XXX_

_This is an ocean-dwelling creature, resident in the North Sea. It is around 10 inches long and has a venom sac, which it uses to shoot poison at its attacker when threatened. Merpeople are known to use the Lobalug as a weapon.  
_

_Review Please!_


	8. Chapter 8

_(A/N): Nine reviews! Yey! Thanks! lol. In celebration, I made you all cookies. Both vegan and otherwise._

**Lily Evans Potter Black Lupin:** _yeah, I know. It'll get better, eventually._

**willowvilya:** _Aw, thanks. I'm glad you like it._

**yoyoyo123**_: lol thanks._

**Lady Lestrange:** _I usually have issues with the whole Luna/Harry ship. Far-fetched as people think it, this is the only way I can see them ever getting together. Plus, I like my Luna. Thanks for reading my story, I haven't had much time recently, but when I get a chance I'll read yours. Ginny and Tom, thats a ship I haven't ever really pursued in the past. Most of what I read is HG/SS or slash. _

**Harpy Prince:**_ I've personally never seen Luna as clueless. She has to be intelligent, as she is in Ravenclaw, and at the end of the fifth book other than Harry she was the only one who escaped almost unscathed. I can't just ditch Ginny! Though she isn't technically in this chapter..._

**Absolutelyfabulous**: _I'm writing as fast as I can!_

**GOLDEN-CAT-EYES1**: _thank you!_

**mysockisonfire:** _Lol. We can all thank you and the others on the HP boards for getting me to post, ever. You know how bad I am at writing, or sitting down long enough to do it. And so therefore we all thank you for annoying me. Not that I find you annoying._

**Zesuit**:_ I heart angst!_

* * *

Harry sat in stunned silence, staring in the direction of Luna. He had no idea how to react. Dementors, dragons, Voldemort, all he could handle, but this? How does one handle this?

It didn't seem to be much of an issue though, as Luna quickly stood up and walked away, towards the street, trying to figure out what had just happened. She'd only told the truth to one person, even her father still believed it to be an accident, why would she tell now? And of all people to tell, why him? He already felt bad for her, even before all this mess. She didn't want him to feel bad for her; she just wanted him to understand.

It took Harry a while to register what Luna had said, and even longer to realize she had left. He looked to his right and left, than spun around, but failed to see her. He didn't think she would head back to the party, not in the state she was in, but where else was there to go? He stood staring around the yard, expecting her to appear, and than decided to climb onto the railing of the porch to look around. Everyone was still in the backyard, so no one would see him.

With one hand on the iron rail, and another on the house, Harry lifted himself on the thin banister, and carefully stood. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her walking down the street past the hedges, headed for town. Harry jumped off the railing, a stupid move- he landed on two separate steps and twisted one ankle. He gritted his teeth against it though, and went after Luna.

He was quickly surprised at how far she had gotten just by walking, or maybe he was just slower because of the pain in his ankle. Fate or his athletic build was in his favor tonight though, as he caught up quickly enough. She turned and looked at him, and sighed as though in defeat, though of what he wasn't sure. Now that he was next to her though, he wasn't sure what to say.

She kept walking, down the narrow windy lane onto a slightly straighter road, as though she knew exactly where she was going, and how to get there. Harry followed her, lagging slightly behind, waiting for someone to say something, anything. She continued on, her pace increasing, and twenty minutes later Harry wondered if she hadn't gotten lost, or if anyone was worried about them yet; it wasn't polite to skip out on your best friend's brother's wedding, and to be honest, they were a bit closer than that.

Harry considered stopping Luna, asking if she knew where she was, or where she was going, but suddenly she stopped. Harry looked around; they were at a children's park, and across the street was a school for muggle kids. Two swings stood apart from the jungle of slides and ropes. Luna sat on one, Harry sat next to her. She stared at her hands for a few seconds, than started pulling on a loose thread on her skirt.

"Don't do that, it will all unravel" Harry said, surprising even himself; what, could he not come up with anything cooler to say that that?

"Do what, pull the thread or talk to you? The latter seems to have more dire effects. Anyway, shouldn't you be at the wedding? They're likely to start looking for you, you know, they'll be worried if you've gone missing. And there's cake." Harry turned to look at her.

"Cake?"

"Yes." It seemed reasonable enough to her, who doesn't like cake?

"I can't eat the cake. Its strawberry shortcake."

"You don't like strawberries?"

"I don't know; I'm allergic to them."

"Oh," Luna looked down, and fiddled with her charm bracelet.

"So what did you do?" Harry asked, breaking the silence.

"Hmm?"

"When she died, your mother, what did you do? How did you deal with it?"

"I don't know, I didn't really think; I walked out, I had no where to go, and no idea what to do. My father was at work; he worked for the ministry then. I wasn't allowed to use floo, I didn't know how. So I just started walking, and ended up here.

I always loved this park, my mother would take me here, we'd have picnics, and she would read to me and climb trees with me looking for nargles.

When I came here, I sat on the swings for hours. I thought that maybe if I sat on the swings long enough, swung high enough, maybe she would catch me on her way to heaven and take me with her.

Bill found me, Bill Weasley. He was nineteen I think, at the time. He brought a girl to the park; I think he was rather surprised to see me here, alone. It was getting dark; I'd been there for hours. He promised not to tell anyone, he's the only one I've ever told; until you that is. It's why I was invited to the wedding, he writes me letters sometimes, treats me like a sister. I talk to him, when I can't talk to anyone else. I told him when I… I talked to him when… He writes me letters sometimes."

Luna looked down again, and went back to fiddling with her bracelet, looking up only when she felt the weight of Harry's eyes on her. She raised her eyes to meet his, held his gaze. She was by no means pretty; her eyes where large and round as an owls, her hair straggly, her skin pale, as though she didn't spend nearly enough time outside. Yet she was absolutely and utterly beautiful; she radiated with power and compassion, her vulnerability and innocence only intensifying the attraction Harry undeniably felt for her. He didn't know where this feeling was coming from, he felt as though he needed to do something for her; to protect her. But she didn't need protecting, she needed… a friend. And by sleeping with her he had taken the one friend she had had away from her. What had he done?

Harry stepped away from her, disgusted at himself. She asked for so little, she did so much, and he had single handedly made her life even harder. He was revolting; he was as bad as the Death Eaters, ruining other people's lives for a night of pleasure. He couldn't look at her, he was too ashamed. He turned around and ran, ran back to the street, and up to the party, thinking maybe if he ran hard enough, he could escape the truth.

Back at the park Luna watched him run from her, her eyes saddened. She muttered under her breath, and watched a silver owl fly from the tip of her wand, into the night. She was going home; he father needn't worry about her whereabouts.

* * *

_(A/N): In case I wasn't completly clear at the end, Luna communicated with her father through her patronus. For those who are unaware, the Lovegoods live nearby the Weasleys, so Luna knows her way around, etc._


	9. Chapter 9

**(A/N):**_ Hey! Sorry I took so long updating, school and shit got me down, but fear not! I am up again and here with a post! Yey me! Ohmigosh you guys, thank you so much for all of the reviews, I feel loved. lol._

_Special thanks go out to: _**PersephoneMediocris, e-chan16, absolutelyfabulous, Chicken Pot Pie the third, pettybureaucrat, mysockisonfire, MRSTJ1, Jayne1955, Eddie 1990, luna, LiquidThoughts, skarm, Stacey,**_ and last but not least;_ **Kourtney.**

_Thank you all so much for reviewing, there was actually enough of you that the idea of writing personal responces is too scary for me to go through. Fourteen people reviewed. You rock. I'll shut up now and get on with the chapter..._

* * *

"Harry, Harry are you sure? Wouldn't you rather just move in with the Weasley's? You shouldn't be living alone, you're only seventeen." Hermione paced the yard, trying to get Harry to see reason. He hadn't been acting the same since the wedding, all he would think about is Voldemort, he obsessed, wouldn't take a break for a moment. Everyone told him to calm down, to relax, but he wouldn't. Fred and George had tried slipping him some elixir to induce euphoria, but Harry became very angry once the effects wore off, and the twins didn't try anything to help him out after that. No one knew what was bothering him, he wouldn't talk to anyone, and now he was planning to move out.

"Hermione, it's my house, and my life. I can do what I want, and I want to move to Grimmauld Place." His birthday was yesterday, he didn't have to live with the Dursleys anymore; he had fulfilled Dumbledore's wishes and was now free to leave. And he would; his things were packed and the Order had been notified, courtesy of Mrs. Weasley. A small team of Aurors would be assisting him, making sure that he apparated to the right place. Because naturally he was so incompetent that he couldn't do it alone.

Voldemort was on his tail and the Ministry had so forth accomplished nothing, though Harry himself couldn't talk, as the Order had yet to find any information of the location or form of any of the remaining Horcruxes. They had compiled a list of all known wizards from the past two centuries living in Britain and Ireland, with the initials R.A.B, (magical folk live longer than muggles) but as there were currently two hundred and five names on the list, this wasn't helping further their research much.

One name Harry was most interested in researching was Sirius's little brother, Regulas. It was a well known fact that Regulas had been a Death Eater, and Sirius had said he had been killed by fellow Death Eaters after leaving their circle. He seemed a likely candidate, but all possibilities must be researched. Until they knew who it was, it was impossible to be truly sure whether Slytherins locket had been destroyed, or had simply been stolen.

"Fine, do what you want. But honestly, how are you going to eat? Can you even cook? The place hasn't been lived in for a year, g-d knows what has been breeding in it, the dust must be sky high, how are you going to take care of yourself?" It was a losing battle, the one she was on, but she had to let her opinion be known, and she most definitely did not think Harry should be moving into that manor by himself.

Mrs. Weasley had had enough difficulty letting Ron live with the Dursleys, she absolutely refused to let her youngest son go somewhere so unprotected; at least at Harry's Aunt and Uncles, Voldemort couldn't get to them. So until Hermione returned from visiting her parents, Harry was alone, with only the protection of the house, and the Fidelius charm, though Harry technically wasn't under it, the house was. Harry was the secret keeper. There had been much protesting, mostly from Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, and Lupin, but in the end, it was Harry's house, and it was his decision.

Grimmauld place hadn't been used for any means since Sirius's death. Instead the Order had temporarily taken to meeting at Moody's place, for only his had the number of wards preset that would be necessary for them. Useful as it was, it just hadn't felt right to anyone to use Grimmauld place with Sirius dead, and Harry being away at school.

"Hermione! I'm fully capable of taking care of myself! What do you think I've been doing for the past seventeen years? Or the last six for that matter? I think I can handle a couple pots and pans. Besides, I won't be alone all the time, the Order is going to use it for Headquarters again. And it's not like I'm trapped there like Sirius was, I can leave you know." What was it with women, thinking men were completely incompetent? Mrs. Weasley had already forced him into agreeing to stop at the Burrow once a week for a meal, professor McGonagall gave him an enormously thick book covering everything from cooking and cleaning, to basic first aid, and Fleur who had joined the Order after the honeymoon, insisted on teaching him exactly how to perform basic cleaning spells on his clothing. Apparently his robes smelled poorly.

"Oh, alright." Hermione sighed in defeat. "I'm coming back though, after I see my parents for a bit."

"Have you told them yet?" Harry asked, knowing she hadn't. She said she didn't want to worry them; that they wouldn't understand why she was doing what she was. He wouldn't tell her so, but Harry had an underlying suspicion that she still hadn't come to terms with the fact that she was a school dropout, that she wouldn't be returning to Hogwarts, to school, to the academic world in which she so succeeded. The thought depressed even him, but it was unavoidable. He had to defeat Voldemort.

Voldemort was becoming stronger by the minute, and the death toll was mounting. When he told professor McGonagall he would not be returning to Hogwarts, she wasn't in the least surprised. In fact, she had put a hand on his shoulder, gave him a sharp look, and bid him good luck. It was very surreal.

"You know I haven't. My parents, they just… they wouldn't understand. I have to do this."

"No, Hermione. You don't. I told you and Ron you can go back, you don't have to come with me, you can go back at anytime, no hard feelings. You understand that don't you?"

"Yes, and I couldn't live with myself if I didn't do this. You do get that, right?"

"Yes, I do" Harry said, pulling Hermione into a warm embrace. He knew she still wondered what had happened that night, over three weeks ago, but he couldn't bring himself to talk about it, and she had enough sense not to ask. Luna hadn't returned to the wedding, and Harry hadn't seen nor heard from her since. He often wondered where she was, how she was, but he never voiced his concern. He was still too disgusted with himself over the whole matter.

They heard a crash from inside, a series of rather angry words quickly following, made by a most definitely female voice.

"Tonks!" Hermione shrieked happily, running into the house.

"I told them specifically NOT to apparate inside the house! My aunt is going to be furious…" Harry said, rushing into the house behind Hermione, to access the damage and greet the aurors who had most noticeably arrived.

The damage inside was minimal; a few broken plates, and an overturned trash bin. It was all quickly repaired and the trash spelled back where it belongs.

"You kids alright?" A petite blond witch asked, glancing back and forth between Harry and Hermione, as to make sure no one was hurt.

"Yeah, we're fine. We were outside anyway." Harry responded

"Wotcher Harry, Hermione. You ready to go? We need to get you all to Grimmauld place before Molly has an aneurysm. Where's Ron?" Tonks asked, looking around.

"Upstairs, finishing packing. Left it to the last minute, despite how many times I prodded him to hurry up."

"Actually Hermione, he left it until the last minute to get you back for prodding him every five minutes to pack."

"Well that's just cutting the nose off to spite the face, now isn't it? I'll go get him, so that we can leave." Hermione said, as she walked out of the room to find Ron.

"So… Harry. How you doing? Nervous about living alone?"

"Not really, no. Hermione will be back to visit in a few weeks, and Ron will probably spend most of the day's at Grimmauld place, he's only sleeping at the Burrow because Mrs. Weasley wants him too. So, where's Lupin?"

"With the werewolves again. He's still trying to convince a few to join the Order, or at least resist He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, but it isn't going so well. And without the Wolfsbane potion, his health is failing."

"He's okay though, isn't he? Because I don't want him to do this if it's going to kill him or anything."

"Oh, no Harry he'll be fine. He's just a bit tired is all. I keep trying to get him to take a rest from it all, but this is what Dumbledore wanted him to do, and he'll probably do it until, well he'll do it as long as he can." Tonks looked a bit peaky, and quickly changed the subject as Hermione and Ron came back into the room, Ron's luggage in tow. "Oh Hermione, Ron, good you're here. Everyone ready to go?"

Harry nodded, and took one last glance around him. His aunt and uncle were with Dudley visiting Aunt Marge. This morning was the last he ever had to see them, and this would be the last he'd ever have to be here. He was leaving the home in which he grew up. True, it hadn't been much of a home, but still, the majority of his life was here. Leaving this place was like leaving his childhood behind. He was a man now, and he had a name to live up to.

----

"Hey Harry" Hermione said, walking into Grimmauld place to find Harry in the dining room, poring over a book. She threw a magazine onto the table, and put her luggage down.

"Hermione! How have you been?" Harry said, his happiness shining though his obvious exhaustion as he stood up to bestow his best friend with a hug.

"I've been fine, nothing really new has happened since my last owl to you, what, five hours ago? Six?" Harry grinned at her. She had been true to her word, and sent him a letter daily, informing him of how her parents had reacted when she had finally told them she wasn't returning to Hogwarts, that she had chosen instead, to help conquer a madman, and that she really wanted them to go into hiding. In return, Harry had finally informed her what had happened at the Weasley wedding, and what he had been feeling ever since.

Much as she claimed to understand his feelings, and insisted that he was not like the death eaters, Harry still felt awful about everything. Hermione had a suspicion as to what was exactly creating such deep feelings of guilt within him, but chose not to voice it. All would come out in due time.

After spending an hour together, catching up, Hermione left to put her things up in the room Harry gave her, and then flooed to the Burrow to say hello to Ron. They'd only been dating a little over two months, and were already acting like a married couple, checking in on each other, giving each other little gifts, fighting ever other minute… it was very sweet, not to mention sickening.

As soon as Hermione had left the room, Harry picked up the magazine she'd left on the table. The Quibbler. It was a special edition; Hunting forCrumple-Horned Snorkacks. Luna was on the cover. She looked good; her cheeks had filled out a bit, and were slightly flushed, as though she'd just been active. She was standing beside her father, both in khaki colored robes and hunting boots. Mr. Lovegood had a net in one hand and was waving to the camera with the other. Luna was just smiling, one hand resting just under her stomach, the other adjusting the strap on the cumbersome device she was carrying. They looked happy.

So she'd really done it then; gone to Sweden with her father. She had said sometime during the school year that she was going to, but that all seemed like ages ago, and not just a couple months. He wondered how she was, if she thought of him, or if he was just another painful memory she was trying to repress.

She was a strange girl, and he rather missed her company, though he couldn't admit that, even to himself. He was too busy trying to regain Ginny's trust in him. He loved her, and couldn't imagine his life without her.

They were currently rebuilding their friendship; Ginny wanted to be friends before they could even think about dating again. This was okay with Harry though, he hadn't changed his mind about dumping her; it was better for her own safety. Voldemort had gotten to Sirius, and he was a full grown wizard. How hard would it be to kill an underage witch?

It was nice talking to her again though. It had started out awkwardly enough, Harry showing up for dinner at the Burrow at Mrs. Weasley's request, Ginny glaring at him, Ron acting completely unaware… but after some forced conversation it had almost seemed like everything was back to normal. It was nice; he hadn't realized how much he'd missed feeling like a family. Maybe one day, after he'd conquered Voldemort, he and Ginny could start one of these. If she was talking to him then, of course.

* * *

_Hee Hee._

_Review please!_


	10. Chapter 10

_(A/N): OMG I am so sorry this took me so long to get up! This hasn't been the best month, with exams and shopping and life getting in the way. Plus I started a new fic called Broken Rainbows, which hopefully will be up in a few days. On the bright side, I outlined the rest of this story, so hopefully it won't take me so long to post again. This isn't one of my longer posts, but it's definitly important._

_Thanks to everyone who reviewed, you have no idea how much longer it would have taken me to post this if you hadn't. I hope you enjoy this chapter! The next one should be longer. _

* * *

"Can we take a break?" Luna asked, slightly out of breath from all the walking.

"Again Luna? We just stopped not too long ago. We need only go a little farther, than we can set up tent and you can rest, okay?"

"Okay," Luna said, trying to ignore the pressure on her bladder and her desire to sit down right in the middle of the Swedish forest and take a nap.

They had left England just a week ago, two days after the Weasley wedding. They traveled most of the way via boat, choosing to stay a couple days in Norway to see the Norwegian fjords, and than spending a day in Stockholm, Sweden. They started walking through the dense forestry of northern Sweden just yesterday, planning to camp a few weeks to search for Crumple-Horned Snorkacks. They were elusive creatures, having remained nearly unnoticed for centuries, by muggles and magical folk alike. Nonetheless, Luna wanted to catch one. Her father said that he would allow her to write an editorial on their excursion, to run in the August edition of the Quibbler.

She'd been feeling off color a bit lately, but didn't want to say anything to her father about it. They'd been planning this trip for a long time, and she didn't want to spoil it just because she had a cold or something of the like. It was probably temporary anyway; there was no point in worrying about it.

And so Luna trudged on, carrying her pack and a Curious Creatures Catcher; a device used to help witches and wizards find the most rare and furtive of magical creatures. Her father had put a spell on everything, to make it easier for them to lug around, but even so her feet ached and her lower back was weary from all the traveling. They had walked a good six miles already, and had approximately one more to go, before they reached the Lule River, at the base of the Kjolen Mountains.

The sun was still high above Luna and her father when finally they stopped that night, even though it was past supper time. Luna and her father set up the tent, and when they were done Luna went directly to bed, ignoring her fathers query as to whether or not she wanted to eat. She didn't, and she wasn't in the mood to explain why.

The sun rose bright and early; too early Luna thought. It wasn't yet five am according to her alarm clock, and the birds were already chirping. Luna could hear her father calling her from the kitchen, telling her breakfast was ready. Putting a hand to her head and pushing the blankets down with the other, she slowly sat up and looked around.

Her room in the tent was smaller than she remembered. She hadn't taken a good look around last night; she was too tired, but looking around now at the familiar canvas walls and cedar furniture it all seemed rather quaint to her. She had spent many holidays in this room on various trips with her parents growing up, but it was different now. When she walked into the main room her mother wouldn't be sitting at the table with a newspaper open, chatting with her father as he poured pancake batter onto the griddle. In the bathroom there wouldn't be a spread of various colors of eye shadow, no columns of lipstick, and no lines of potion bottles, to keep her mom okay.

Luna walked slowly into the kitchen and sat across from her father, wrapping herself tightly in her sweater. It was chilly. She took hold of the pitcher of orange juice on the table, and poured herself a glass. The smell of it made her nauseous, and when she took a sip of it, she immediately spit it back out.

"I think the juice is bad" Luna stated

"Why?" her father asked, taking a sip out of his own glass.

"It's sour, can't you taste it?" Her father took another sip.

"It tastes fine to me. Did you brush your teeth already? It might just be the taste from the tooth paste. Here, eat a biscuit, and some ham." Her father said, passing her a plate of food. Luna took a look at it, than quickly stood from the table and ran to the bathroom, knocking her chair over in her hurry.

Her father looked up from his food, and put down his fork to follow his daughter.

"Luna, are you all right?" He asked her, knocking on the door lightly. She was obviously not all right, as could be concluded from the sounds of her retching in the other room, but he couldn't think of anything better to say.

"I… I'm fine. I'll be fine." Luna said after a few minutes. Her father could hear water running, and assumed she was rinsing her mouth.

"Do you want to rest? We can wait to go out, if you want. We don't have to start hunting today. I don't want you to wear yourself out or anything." He said, worried. Luna rarely got sick, even when she was little she seemed immune to most diseases that plagued other children.

By the middle of the morning Luna was feeling better, and managed to keep some dry cereal down, so she and her father laced up their boots, and grabbed their gear to set out. This routine continued for a few days, and by the end of the week Luna's father was beginning to really worry about her. He couldn't think of why Luna was sick every morning, but fine later to go out and hunt. He wanted her to take a few days and rest, but she wouldn't hear of it. She was determined to find a Crumple-Horned Snorkack, and much as he doubted they even existed, she was stubborn as her mother, and he wasn't about to ruin this trip for her. She was just like her mother, and though some of her beliefs about reality may be a bit off, he loved her for it. She needn't know he didn't really believe.

- - -

Luna stared up at the canvas ceiling above her bed, wringing the sheet she held in her hands. She had to tell him, she knew she had to, but how would he take it? And what if she was wrong? She had figured out what was wrong with her once her period failed to show, and put the clues together. It was the only thing that made sense. But how to tell her father?

It took her a few days to gather the courage to approach him, and only did so when he insisted they leave the forest, to have a Healer look her over. She refused to leave, and when he asked why she was being so adamant, she told him to sit down.

"Luna, what is this all about? Your sick, you need to see a Healer. I don't know what's wrong with you, but we need to fix it."

"Nothings wrong with me," Luna said softly, sitting down next to her father.

"Than what is it?" He asked, watching her carefully. She looked scared; she was staring down at her hands and playing with her charm bracelet, something she only did when she was very distracted, or worried deeply about something.

"You promise not to get mad?"

"Luna love, what's wrong? You know you can tell me anything."

"I know, it's just… I think… I'm pregnant."

* * *

_(A/N): yeah, a bit of a cliffy. I thought it was the best place to leave off, even if it is a bit short._

_Anyways, please review, it makes me happy, not to mention post faster._

_cookies!_

_Emma_


	11. Chapter 11

_**(A/N):** Hey everyone. I know this is seriously overdue, but I did what I could. I've been having some serious issues at home for the past three months, but they seem to be getting better now, or at least I've gotten used to it. One or the other. Anyway, sorry the chapter isn't longer, it just seemed like the natural stopping point in the chapter. I know you guys want to see Harry's reaction, and you will, but not until next chapter. I just couldn't get it to flow well in this chapter. I actually finished this chapter a little over a week ago, but I kept trying to get Luna into the house and to tell him, and it just wasn't working right, not in this chapter at least. Go figure. _

_Anyway, thank you so much everyone who reviewed! If it hadn't been for you I very well might have given up and walked away when the going got rough. So. How about we open with a nice tramatic dream sequence?__

* * *

Everything was black, so black. The bed, the walls, her mouth; all black. He kissed her deeply, tongue probing, carnivorous. She bit his bottom lip and he tasted blood; tasted love and war. _

_He looked down at her, her breath shaking with every thrust, crimson hair sprawling against the black satin pillow, freckles sprinkling across her angelic face. He was so close, so close. He closed his eyes to the darkness to find dark. He opened them to blank eyes and flaxen hair. He tried to sit back and stop but she pulled him back down. She kissed him and he forgot all about Ginny, he was with her now. She would finish him. _

_She smiled sweetly and wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him in deeper. She arched her back and coyly tucked away a lock of his hair. He just kept through the motions; kept going through the dance that so was his life. He knows he can not stop. He doesn't care. It always feels good in the end, victory or death, it always feels good._

_He moans deeply; he knows he's about to come. It will end soon, he will end it. But now Luna is gone, replaced by death with red eyes. The site revolts him but he plunges in nonetheless. He wonders vaguely why this man would be bottoming, but the thought is not important. He has a job to finish. A slim forked tongue reaches for him; he opens his mouth to receive it. He shudders and pushes deeply one last time, to find that he is now alone. Voldemort is gone._

_He looks up to find strings, tiny black threads tied to each of arms, his legs, his head. Like a marionette, like Pinocchio. To his right is an audience, on one side the Order, on the other the Death Eaters. The Ministry stands in the background, and he dances for them. They laugh at him, make crude jokes. It is all he is to them, a harlequin for their amusement. _

_He wants to be real; he wants to be in the audience, to cut the stings. He bites at the cords and they laugh harder, more fervently. He pulls at the stings, looks up to see the man holding them. The man is crying but he doesn't care. The man could drop him if he wished. _

_Behind the bed a fairy appears, he turns away from Dumbledore to look at her. She isn't right though, her dress is not blue but black. Her skin is blue, yellow, green. She looks like a bruise. She walks over to him and raises her wand into the air. He looks up hopefully; she has the power to free him. She hits him on the head once. Twice. Three times. He begins shaking though he doesn't know why. The audience becomes blurry, the stage just a fragment of his imagination. All that remains is the bed._

oOoOoOo

"Harry, Harry wake up!" Hermione said, grasping his shoulders, shaking him gently.

"Hmm?" Harry groaned groggily, glad to be awake but not willing to open his eyes. Reality wasn't much better than fantasy.

"Harry! You have got to get up! She's going to be here in just under an hour!"

"Who?" He asked dumbly. He knew who. She had owled just yesterday, two days after Hermione had returned.

"You know who. Now get up! I didn't agree to live with you for the summer to be you're personal maid. I am here strictly for…"

"The Order, yeah I know Hermione. Look, I'm sorry. I'm getting up, see? And I appreciate what you're doing, I do, I just, I don't know." How could he explain to her this feeling he felt? Like his life was fleeing from his control, dancing just outside his grasp, mocking him, and much as he tried, he would never get it back.

"It's okay Harry, I know what you mean. It's stressful, everything you're undertaking. And now, with Luna coming over- I thought you two left it off on bad terms?"

"We did, I don't know why she's coming over; I kind of just ditched her at the end of the wedding. It should be me going to her to apologize, if anything."

"Well that's the truth. Anyway, I have to leave. Mrs. Weasley, Ginny, and I are going into Diagon Alley to pick up Ginny's school supplies. And possibly to pick up some potion ingredients for Lupin. It's been hard on him, not being able to rely on Professor Snape to brew Wolfsbane. I'll probably stay the night at the Burrow, okay?"

"Okay. Er, would you mind picking up some stuff for me? Mundungus seems to have made off with some necessary items. Hold on a minute, I'll write a list." Harry said, standing up and walking over to his trunk, rummaging to find some parchment and a quill. He'd been living at Grimmauld Place just over a week and he hadn't yet seen the need to unpack. It hadn't fully hit yet that this situation was permanent; at least for however long Voldemort was still alive and well, with horcruxes to spare.

Harry finished off his list and handed it to Hermione along with some gold. She smiled, and told him to get ready, then left for the Burrow. Harry looked down at himself and then at his watch (Hermione had given him a new one for his birthday). He had thirty minutes to get ready. He sighed, and then headed for the bathroom. A shower never hurt.

------

Luna sat in a chair at the kitchen, toying with her charm bracelet. She had searched for hours in her trunk for the strawberry charm, but it was in vain. She could not find it. Its loss saddened her.

On her first birthday her father gave her the bracelet, shrunk to fit her tiny wrist. It had two charms on it; one of a moon, also from her father, representing her namesake. The other charm was the strawberry, from her mother. Her mother used to say it reminded her of Luna, of how tiny, pink, and sweet she was they day she was born. It was her favorite.

Her father walked into the room, looked over to where she sat. His eyes were heavy, sad. He sat beside her and lifted her chin to look at him.

"Are you alright Luna? Don't worry, you can do this. You're a strong girl. Just, be careful how you tell him, okay love? Don't spring it onto him right when you walk through the fireplace, give him some time. You haven't seen this boy since the Weasley wedding, and it didn't sound to me like that was a really good encounter. I'm still not sure I want you to do this alone, I think it would be better if I came along with you." Luna held back tears as she turned her face away from her father's hand.

"I have to do this alone." She had originally planned to go with her father, she needed him for the support, but Bill had advised against it. Luna had written to him after the Swedish Healer her father took her to confirmed her suspicions.

Luna hadn't wanted to tell Harry, but the Wizarding world was small, and in just a few months she would show. She didn't want Harry to find out by way of rumor. Bill told her that Harry would be moving just before she returned to England, and that posed a problem; his home was under the Fidelious charm, and if he left it, a team from the Order would follow him. She didn't want to tell him she was having his child in front of half a dozen ministry officials; it was an awkward enough situation without them. And she couldn't tell him at the Weasley's house, as Bill suggested, because getting all of them out of the house would be a feat in itself, especially since Charley was still visiting from Romania, causing Fred and George to be around more often as well.

This left Harry's house the last feasible option, but she would have to be given the address, and the Order wasn't giving that up lightly, or at all. It was difficult, writing to Harry, trying to convey the importance of meeting privately without sounding suspicious or actually telling him why she wanted to speak to him. Some things just couldn't be written on parchment.

Bill had arranged it for her; the meeting. He was to arrive at her house at approximately nine fifty, and would side-along apparate her outside Harry's house.

Luna was nervous. She hadn't seen Harry since the wedding, and had no idea how to bring it up. It wasn't the sort of thing that one just blurted out, but there was no way to back into the conversation either. There was no point in stressing now though, what would happen would happen, and there was nothing she could do about it now. Bill was about to arrive anyway.

-------

Harry waited in the foyer; sitting on the stairs for the knock he knew was coming on the front door. Bill said he would tell her to knock, to avoid waking the portrait of Mrs. Black. His watch read nine fifty-nine am. She should be arriving any minute now.

Harry ran his hands through his hair nervously; he had no idea why she was coming, and was still too humiliated to face her, but when he too the letter to the Weasley's to ask them about it, Bill had been oddly persistent about him meeting with her, and even had volunteered to take her to Grimmauld Place himself. If Harry didn't trust the Weasleys as much as he did, he would have been suspicious. In all honesty he was suspicious, but of what he didn't know.

At exactly ten am the door bell rang. The portrait of Mrs. Black roared into an angry rage, and Harry quickly got up to pull the curtain over her, then straightened his shirt, took a deep breath, and opened the front door.

**

* * *

**

_**(A/N):** Cliffs at every turn, I know. Sorry. _


	12. Chapter 12

**(A/N):** _Finally,chapter twelve. Gosh. Sorry about that. Anyway, thanks everyone for the reviews!_

* * *

Luna stepped over the threshold into the manor holding her breath, and taking a last look behind her. Bill was gone. It was just her and Harry now. He was standing just inside, holding the door open for her. He looked incredibly uncomfortable with her being there. 'Not as uncomfortable as he will be' she thought.

"Erm, Hello Luna." He said, awkwardly holding his hand out. She assumed he meant for her to shake it, though she couldn't imagine why. She held out her hand, and grasped his lightly. It was warm, damp. She knew hers felt ice cold against his skin.

They let go quickly, and Harry ushered her through the long, dingy hallway than up the stairs to the first landing, turning into the drawing room. The room smelled faintly of mold, and the wallpaper was peeling in the corners.

"Do you live here alone?" Luna asked, breaking the silence.

"Um, yes and no. Hermione is staying with me for a while, and people are usually coming and going a lot. I've only been here a week though. Place seems to have fallen into disrepair." Harry said, motioning for Luna to sit on the couch, while he took a seat opposite her in an armchair.

"Oh." Luna replied, staring down at her hands. "Erm, I have to um, I have to tell you…"

"I'm sorry." Harry interrupted.

"Oh, er, what?"

"I'm sorry for how I reacted that day, at the um, wedding."

"Oh, it's alright, I…"

"No, it was rude, and it wasn't fair to you. I shouldn't have run off like that, and I never should have um, you know. I was drunk, and I took advantage of you. I'm sorry."

"Oh, um, thank you?" Luna said, thrown off balance by Harry's sudden apology. "No, I mean, I accept your apology, but that isn't why I came here today. I have to talk to you about something."

"Do you want anything to drink?" Harry asked.

"No, thank you. But I need to…"

"How about something to eat?" Harry stalled, knowing instinctively whatever she had to say, he didn't want to hear.

"Harry I'm pregnant." Luna cried out. Harry's eyes widened and his mouth hung half open, agape. Forever and an hour passed in just a few seconds, and Luna could see years of emotion rush behind Harry's eyes.

"No your not" He finally responded, his lips barely moving, mouth still open.

"Yes Harry, I am." Luna said, reaching for the bag at her feet. "I um, brought pictures. There isn't really much to look at now, it's hard to see, but the Healer was very advanced, and showed me what to look for" Luna handed Harry the pictures, who took them gingerly in his hand and looked down at them.

"I just don't know what, I, I need a minute to take this all in, it's a lot, you know?" Luna nodded in agreement, and continued to sit, looking around the room, trying to avoid staring at the boy in front of her. It was difficult.

Harry looked down at the pictures in his hands, seeing his child, barely larger than his thumb. The pictures were fuzzy, the shapes not quite defined. His child. He had a child, was going to have a child. He couldn't believe it; it was just too much to take.

Luna wandered out of the room after a moment, letting Harry alone with the pictures. She meandered back down the stairs, and found her way into the kitchen. She rummaged through a few cupboards, finally finding two teacups and a tea set. She filled the kettle on the stove with some water from the sink, and then put it back on the ignited stove. She walked into the pantry, and withdrew some dried chamomile and peppermint for the tea. Soothing flavors.

Luna walked around the room slowly, and then around the rest of the lower floor as she waited for the water to boil. It didn't look to her as though Harry belonged in this place, it was so dingy and dark. There were no pictures on the walls, save for a few portraits of rather surly looking men, all of which ignored her.

She was afraid for what Harry's reaction would be, once the truth of the reality set. She didn't want him to hate her, she never wanted him to look at her again the way he did that morning, in the Great Hall. She wasn't sure she was strong enough to handle that. How else would he react, though? He was always one to act, or attack now, ask questions later. But he wouldn't do that to his unborn child, would he? What about the woman carrying it?

A shrill whistle broke through Luna's thoughts, and she strode quickly back into the kitchen to still it. She poured the steaming water over the tea leaves into the teapot, then put the kettle back on the stove, now off. She put a few slightly stale scones she had found also in the pantry, onto the tray with the tea set, and picked it up gingerly to take upstairs. Tea always helped settle her nerves, she hoped they would help settle Harry's too.

She walked up the stairs slowly, trying not to spill as she remembered her father's reaction when she told him she was pregnant.

_They were sitting at the table in their tent, him looking worriedly at her, as she fiddled with her bracelet._

_"You promise not to get mad?"_

_"Luna love, what's wrong? You know you can tell me anything." Her father said, leaning in a bit closer to her._

_"I know, it's just… I think… I'm pregnant." Luna said her face scrunching up as tears leaked out of her eyes._

_"You- You're what? How? When? Who did this to you? Was it that Longbottom boy I saw you talking to at the wedding? Because if it is…" Her father stammered, standing up to pace around the small room. _

_"No, dad. It isn't Neville. And he didn't _do _this to me, it just happened."_

_"Luna, things like this don't just _happen._ It takes a man and a woman…"_

_"Dad, I know. Trust me, I know. I just meant we didn't exactly plan it, we didn't plan any of it." Luna broke down crying._

_"Luna, love, it'll be okay" Her father said, putting an arm around her, wanting to cradle her in his lap like when she was younger, only now finding her too big. "We'll take you to a Healer, it might just all be a false alarm. You'll see."_

_"What if it isn't? I know the symptoms, how many times was I there when mom was pregnant? What if I lose mine like she lost hers? I don't want to lose my baby…" _

_"Shhh, Luna. It'll be alright. You won't lose yours. You're not your mother. You don't have the problems she did."_

Luna pushed back her tears and walked back into the drawing room. Harry was still staring at the photos in his hands. He looked up as she put the tray down on a small table in the room.

"I made tea." She said. He nodded, and she poured him a cup, then one for herself. "Sugar?" She asked, as she dropped two lumps into her own cup.

"Milk" He said softly. Luna poured a drop of milk into his tea, and then brought the cups over to the armchair where he sat. He muttered a low 'thanks', and took the cup with one hand, putting the pictures down on his lap. Luna sat back down on the couch.

"What are we going to do?" He asked her. Luna held back tears; he wasn't mad at her. They could talk like adults.

"What do you mean?"

"No one can know. No one. Do you know how much Voldemort would reward any of his Death Eaters if they gave him this kind of information? You would be an instant target. Our child would be an instant target, their way of getting to me. We have to keep you safe. We can't have you bandying about, people will talk, and a few might be able to put two-and-two together." He was patronizing her, but she knew he was right. Harry Potter's child would never be safe, not while Voldemort and his supporters were about.

"What two-and-two? The only people who would be able to link me to you are your roommates at Hogwarts, Hermione, and the Weasleys. And I had planned on going back to Hogwarts."

"What about your roommates? Didn't they ask why you'd been out all night?"

"No. They usually ignore me." Luna said ambivalently. "I really want to go back to Hogwarts. I think I'll be safe there, and I can't just forget about my education."

"What about when you have the baby though? Hogwarts doesn't exactly have a day-care. And you can't leave the baby with me, because I don't even know where I'll be half the time. Once Moody starts teaching me Occlumency and the Order starts getting some _real_ information down…"

"Then what are we going to do?"

"I don't know. I really don't know."

oOoOoOoOo

"Well first of all, I'm going to have to start giving Ms. Lovegood dear some lessons," Mrs. Weasley started, staring dangerously into the room crowded with Weasleys (including Fleur), Luna and her Father, Harry and Remus acting as his guardian, Tonks, Hermione, and Professor McGonagall.

"I will teach her the basics on childcare and the birthing process. Harry dear is going to stay back with the Order as planned, as is Hermione and Ron, though I still don't like this plan of yours. The three of you will receive any amount of tutoring any member of the Order can spare, because I'm not letting you three mess up your NEWTs. When the war is over, you'll still need a good career. As for Ginny, you will be in charge of keeping care of Luna once you two go back to Hogwarts. Harry isn't there to make sure she eats right and everything, and yes Luna I know you can take care of yourself, but this is an emotional time for everyone and you'll find yourself wanting someone to lean on more often than not. I know this plan isn't necessarily _ideal_ for everyone involved, but that is what we are going to do. Any questions?"

Everyone sat in stunned silence. Most were too nervous to push Mrs. Weasley over the edge to ask a question if they had one. When Harry had taken Luna over to the Burrow to ask Mrs. Weasley for help, he hadn't expected her to call a meeting of this size to discuss the matter. Of course, they weren't exactly discussing anything, more like Mrs. Weasley had called Martial Law and she was dictating how things were to go. Honestly though, it didn't seem like too bad an idea to Harry, he just wasn't sure how Ginny would take having to help Luna when she was carrying his baby.

"Molly," Professor McGonagall spoke up "What are we going to do when the baby does come? You said you were already two months pregnant?" McGonagall asked, looking at Luna. She nodded. "Then the baby will be here in just seven months! Late March or early April. School will still be in session. What will she do with the baby while she's in classes?"

"Luna, what classes are you taking next year?" Mrs. Weasley asked Luna.

"Oh, um. Well I haven't gotten my OWLs back yet, but I was hoping to continue with Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Divination, Charms, and Herbology."

"Okay, Ginny. What classes were you planning on taking?"

"Charms, Herbology, Transfiguration, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Potions" Ginny answered her mother nervously.

"Okay. Then the two of you will only have two classes at the same time. Ginny will take care of the baby while Luna is in Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and Divination. During the two classes the two of you have together; Luna will have to give the baby to someone else. Professor, do you think that Madam Pomfrey would mind? As there will be significantly less students at the school next year, she shouldn't have quite as many demands on her time."

"I'll have to ask her, but I'm sure that if not her, any of the professors with a free period would be thrilled to watch over the child. Especially professor sprout, poor dear is Barren."

"Good, so everything is settled then. Does everyone agree to the plan?" Everyone nodded, some more enthusiastically than others. It wasn't an ideal plan for everyone involved, but then, neither was the situation.


End file.
